Remembering John Lennon - Four Decades Later

 Four decades ago tonight, the world bid farewell to one of rock's finest men. John Lennon has been gone today as long as he had lived. Born John Winston Lennon, on October 9, 1940, Lennon's musical contributions, and his calls for world peace, have become a while recognized element of pop culture.

A Massive Career

Lennon's career spanned two and a half decades. At only 15, he started his first band - the Quarrymen, a name derived from Quarry Bank High School. The band developed a style of half-skiffle, half-rock'n'roll.

In the summer of 1957, sixteen-year old Paul McCartney met Lennon backstage after a gig, and Lennon, intrigued by Macca, asked Macca to join. McCartney, in turn, brought along his collegue, fourteen-year-old George Harrison, to the party. It is this lineup of Lennon, McCartney, Harrison, bass player Stuart Sutclife, and drummer Collin Halton (later Pete Best), that would become...

The Fab Four

By the fall of 1960, the aforementioned ensamble were invited to a 48-night residency in Hamburg, and would be in the next two years in a row. After their first Hamburg residency, Best, worn out by the gigging circuit, up and left, which led to Richard Starkey, of failing Rory Storm and the Hurricanes to join. Richard Starkey, of course, became known as Ringo Starr, and thus the Beatles were born. For the curious, the name The Beatles was Sutcliffe's suggestion - to by the name of The Beatals in homage to Buddy Holly and The Crickets, eventually the band changed to The Silver Beatles, before shortening to The Beatles.

While the Fab Four were rising to the top in the early to mid 1960s, Lennon smelled the breakup in 1966. With the US "Beatlemania" phenomenon exhausted, McCartney suggested that the band abandon touring to focus their energy on studio experimention - as was especially the case with 1967's Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, and The Magical Mystery Tour.  The Fab Four's breakup was fueled even more by the sudden death of Brian Epstein, manager of five years, due to an overdose. 

In 1968, John Lennon met Japanese artist Yoko Ono at an exhibition. Though they started out as friends, they quickly began seeing more and more of each other, which of course interfered with Lennon's contributions to the Beatles, and led to Macca taking the wheel. This ended the long-time Lennon-McCartney songwriting partnership. The two ultimately got engaged, and in September of 1969, Lennon informed Macca and Starr that the Fab Four would from then on be the Fab Three.

After they each released side albums, Lennon with his Plastic Ono project, and McCartney's self-titled solo debut in early 1970, the Beatles broke up a little over six months after Lennon's announced departure, with McCartney leaving to focus on music.

The Plastic Ono Band

With Yoko Ono, Lennon started a supergroup known as the Plastic Ono Band. The band featured many popular musicians of the day: Eric Clapton, who had contributed the guitar solo on While my Guitar Gently Weeps, Alan White, who in 1972 would join Yes, session drummer, Jim Kelner, pianist Nicky Hopkins, even former Beatles Harrison and Starr, and many others. Their 1969 Toronto performance, and subsequent live LP, Live Peace in Toronto, was well received.

Lennon's first post-Beatles single, Give Peace a Chance, was written against the then Nigerian Civil War. His 1970 solo debut featured the slow hit, Mother, but with a more accessible sound, it was 1971's Imagine, which earned Lennon his greatest post-Beatles effort with the title track.

Friends with Elton John

It was in the early 70s, that Lennon forged a great friendship with rising piano star Elton John. This eventually led to Elton John covering the Beatles' 1967 hit Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, which features a guitar solo by Lennon (credited with the pseudonym, of "Dr. Winston O'Boogie). 

In 1974, the two made a pledge, that if Whatever Gets You Through the Night, tops the charts, that Lennon would share the stage with Elton. Lo and behold, on November 28, 1974, John Lennon made a surprise appearance. The two performed, in addition, Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, and one of the Fab Four's early hits, I Saw her Standing There.

In 1980, Elton John performed at Central Park as part of his 21 at 33 tour, which could be heard from John Lennon's apartment.

The Tragic Night

In the afternoon of December 8, 1980, Lennon and Yoko Ono had gone to the studio to finish work on an album to be released in early 1981. Prior to that, Lennon had autographed a copy of 1980's Double Fantasy featuring the hit Watching the Wheels, to fan Mark David Chapman. Late that night, they returned when Chapman shot Lennon twice in the back, and twice in the leg. 

Lennon was seriously injured to the point that the NYPD ended up transporing him to the hospital. Although many believe "I'm shot," to be Lennon's last words, his last words were answering "Yes I am" to the NYPD officers who asked him, "Are you John Lennon?"

Lennon was pronounced dead at Roosevelt Hospital around 11pm EST that night. 

Gone, but not forgotten

On December 9, 1980, Yoko Ono stated, and I quote, "There is no funeral for John. John loved and prayed for the human race. Please do the same for him." Lennon's remains were cremated at Ferncliff Cemetary in nearby Hartsdale, New York. 

Yoko Ono, and the other residents of New York City, longed to create a memorial for Lennon for fans to visit. This project took four and a half years to complete, begnning in April of 1981 - four months following his murder. Ono said she would like a living memorial, stating that there were already too many statues at Central Park. On October 9, 1985, what would have been Lennon's 45th birthday, then NYC mayor Ed Koch, and Yoko Ono, held a dedication ceremony for the John Lennon Strawberry Fields Memorial. 

The photo below shows the crowds that gathered on Lennon's 30-year death anniversary, December, 8, 2010. I'm sure if it weren't for the COVID restrictions, there would be just as many today.




Elton John, has written a tribute song, Empty Garden (Hey Hey Johnny), and following the 21 at 33 tour, cut back on performing Lucy in the Sky, as it reminded him too much of Lennon. At the 1985 Live Aid in Philadelphia, Patti LaBelle covered Imagine. Also, Macca recorded Here Today as a tribute to Lennon on his album Tug of War, which was McCartney's third overall solo album, and first following the split with Wings. 

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